Hydraulic hayfork



J1me 1949- DE WlTT c. SHATTUCK 2,474,374

HYDRAULIC HAY FORK 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed. March 19, 1948 INVENTOR. Bi De M/h C. Ska/ ATTORNEYS Patented June 28, 1949 ""HYBRAI'JLIC HKYFORK De- Witt\G. shasttuckyvelvaeNanak. l

' Application March 19, 1948; SerialNo? 15:851'

(01. are-e147 :3 Claims.

This invention relates to" grapples and is=" d-1-- rected' more particularly to" hydraulic-hay fork. "An obj ect "of" the invention is the provision of a grapple for'removi-n hay irom a stack; said'grap plane-vine" a sectiomof a tel sdp bofimwhwh may be substituted readily for-arrinstallation carrying a manure loader one) tractor: said grapple including a, plurality 'c'xf zi rongs p-ivoted on -a-'rrng and actuated by'a hydraulic means.

A" further object of'tlieinvention is" the provision of a hay fork in"whicht'a ring 'pivotally supports the" intermediate" portions 'ofa plurality of radially arranged prongsortines; the innerends of'the prongs havin -pivotar-connections witha movablehead"located'adjacentthe center of ring and connected toahydraulicallypperatedpiston in a cylinder that is'supportedfby'a curvedbrace bar-attached to thering, saidiri'ngbeing'projected outwardly from a tractor "by a specially constructed boom section asareplacement for a manure spreader.

The invention will be be'st understoodfrom a consideration of the following detailed description, in view of the accompanying drawings forming part of the specification, nevertheless, it is to be understood that the invention is not confined to the disclosure; -bein'g -'-susceptible efs-such changes and modifications which shall define no material depaiture from thesalient feature of the invention "as expressed in the appended claims.

In the drawings: I

Fig-tire 1 is-a-bottomplan view- 6f myl-ia-y' fork shown attached to a specially constructed section of a boom,

Figure 2 is a side view of the fork shown in Figure 1,

Figure 3 is a side View of the fork and boom operatively connected to a tractor,

Figure 4 is an enlarged vertical section of the hay fork taken along the line 44 of Figure 1,

Figure 5 is a view in perspective of a connecting link or hanger for swingably supporting a prong or tine from a circular support for the fork,

Figure 6 is a top plan view of a supporting ing for the fork shown attached to a telescoping section of a boom,

Figure 7 is a plan view of a movable head upon which the inner ends of the tines or prongs are pivotally mounted and shown as detached from the hay fork or grapple,

Figure 8 shows more or less diagrammatically with parts in section of an hydraulically operating means for the hay fork.

nigma-9 isa modified form of the connectin means for a cylinder a'nd piston.

Referring more particularlyto' the drawirigs H1 designates =a=supporting"ring formed from'ametaP-tube A serni=circular tubular bar I 1-" has its lower-ends welde d 'td the ring'at diametrically-opposite points with -the brace' bar rising from: said ring. bar- IZ' is welded at -its' -forward end to each side of thering a ndriaexteiids iriwar dly therefrom;

:A- special'ly constructed section lt ofa boom 14 attached to' afi tractor t5=fiFigures 3 and 6) has-a pair: oi 'li'ollovw-rod's t6 receiving the para'llel 'bars IZ 'WLhiCh are adju'stably l leld it place =b'y bclt [1 received in aligned passages in -the telescoping ro'ds. The hollow-rods I &' a'r'e =te1escoped in a pair f parallel hollow rods wan-d; adiustably'retained iri pos'ition by boltsi Brace bars iwand z 'l conneat the rods' t8 together. 'I'he rdd's' l 8 'for'm'the main elements' of the :booin I 4'.

iEachofitn'e ti-nesor prcngs 2 5 of the fork has a relativel straighfiflau-shanki itspivoted on a pin 21 carried b .a' pair: or parallel strap hangers-2a suspemied layaiipin Z9lcarried bwa lug or br cket SU WeIded-Ito th' bottom of the r-ing toaand :depending- -tliereirorn;- -Tl iese lugs are space'd-uniformly around the ring. The tines a're curved inwardly so tnatitney: may: 'b'e forced into' t-he hay.

reciprocating lhead '3 l has its'vvertical axis in linewith" theVe'rtical axis c f tl-ie ring l 0'. Pairs of spaced errcrated ears 32 p'roj act 3 from "the periphery er: the circuia'r head -The'se ears carry pins 33 wmchiaremeceived by passages in'the-inneriendssofz the snanksl 26' of the-tines 25.

A hydraulic cylinder 35 is supported at its upper closed end by a bolt 36 from the center of the semi-circular brace bar II. A piston 31 is mounted for reciprocation in said cylinder. A rod 38 secured to and suspended from the piston moves through a passage in the lower closed end of the cylinder 35. The extreme lower end of the rod is threaded at 39 into a central passage in the head 3|.

As shown in Figure 8 a hydraulic arrangement is provided for causing reciprocation of the piston, the rod and the head 3|. A pump 40 is in communication with a liquid supply tank 41v for oil or water. A pipe 42 is connected between the pump and a two-way valve 43. A pipe 44 conducts liquid under pressure from the valve to the upper end of the cylinder 35 for forcin the piston 31 downwardly. Said pipe acts as an exhaust for the liquid in the upper end of the cylinder when the piston is raised. A pipe 45 between the valves 43 and 4| acts as a return for the liquid.

A pipe 46 not only conducts liquid from the valve 43 to the lower end of the cylinder 35 but acts as a. return for the liquid when the piston is forced downwardly as indicated by the arrows.

The valve 43 is located in a casing 41 and has a curved passage 59 aligned as shown in Figure 8 with the pipes 42 and 44. Said valve has a curved passage aligned with the pipes 45 and 46. The valve is operated by a handle 52. When the valve is revolved through 90 degrees, the passage 50 will be aligned with the pipes 44 and 45 while the passage is aligned with the pipes 42 and 46. In this position of the valve, liquid under pressure is forced through the pipe 46 to the bottom of the cylinder 35 for raising the piston 31 while the liquid from the top of the cylinder is forced through pipe 44, the passage 50 and the pipe 44 to the tank 4|.

When the piston 31 has been lowered as shown in Figure 4, the free ends of the tines are spread apart and the valve 43 is in the position illustrated in Figure 8. However, when the operating arm 52 has been moved to the dotted line position, the piston is raised as will be the head 3| and the inner ends of the shanks so that the free ends of the tines 25 will be brought together for grappling a load of hay in a stack.

The special section I3 of the boom may be adjusted by placing the bolts I! in any of the aligned passages Na in the hollow rods [6 and the bars l2. Thus, when the tractor I5 is moved to the hay stack, it may be necessary to extend or retract the boom so that the hay fork will fall into the proper position on the stack for grappling a load of the hay.

In the modified form shown in Figure 9, the piston a has a rigid fork 55 at the upper end connected by a pin 55 to an eye 51 secured to the curved support II. The piston 38a has a fork 58 connected by a pin 59 to an eye 66 rigid with the head 5|. This construction permits the removal of the cylinder and piston for the application of other instrumentalities.

The boom is mounted by two pins or bolts for replacing the usual manure bucket. This mounting also replaces the usual manure loader.

What I claim:

1. A hay fork in the form of a grapple adapted to be carried by a boom on a tractor comprising a ring, a head mounted for reciprocation below said ring and in line with the center thereof, shanks having the inner ends radiating from and pivotally connected to the head, means pivotally suspending the outer ends of the shanks in spaced relation from the under face of the ring, a rod connected to and rising from the center of the head, a piston attached to the upper end of the rod, a cylinder, a curved brace bar connected to and rising over the ring, means securing the upper end of the cylinder to the brace bar, the piston being mounted in the cylinder, means causing reciprocation of the piston for rocking the shanks and likewise the tines, means connecting the ring to the boom, and curved tines projecting downwardly from the outer ends of the v shanks.

2. A hay fork for attachment to a boom on a tractor comprising a supporting ring mounted on said boom, a bracing member secured on said ring and extending upwardly over the center thereof, a plurality of peripherally spaced apart tines pivotally connected, intermediate the length thereof, to said ring, a head connected to each of said tines at the inner ends thereof and disposed at the center of said ring, a cylinder carried by said bracing member over the center of said ring, a piston slidable in said cylinder and connected to said ring, and means carried by said tractor engaging said cylinder for selectively pivoting said tines on said ring.

3. A hay rake for attachment to a boom on a tractor comprising a supporting member, means engaging said member and said boom for supporting said member on said boom, radially extending tines pivoted intermediate the length thereof on said supporting member and pivotally connected together at their inner ends, a cylinder supported on said supporting member, a piston slidable in said cylinder and connected to the inner ends of said tines, and means carried by said tractor engaging said cylinder for pivoting said tines to the extended and retracted position.

DE WITT C. SHA'I'TUCK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 321,158 Thompson June 30, 1885 477,621 Bulmer June 21, 1892 912,611 Petersen Feb. 16, 1909 1,356,515 Burgson Oct. 26, 1920 1,522,423 Decarli Jan. 6, 1925 1,630,456 Wehr May 31, 1927 2,375,205 Barras May 8, 1945 

